Doll



et. 18, 1938. E 5 SCHAEFFER 2,133,636

DOLL

' Original Filed July 24, 1936 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 18, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE DOLL Original application July 24, 1936, Serial No. 92,333. Divided and this application October 21, 1937, Serial No. 170,178

7 Claims.

This invention relates to dolls and more particularly to a doll structure having eyeballs pivotally mounted therein with automatic mechanism for moving the eyeballs into closed, sleeping position and into open, waking position. This is a deviation of my copending application Serial No. 92,333, filed July 24, 1936.

In accordance with this invention, an eyeball assembly is provided which includes one or more eyeballs pivotally mounted for movement into open and closed position having associated therewith eyeball-operating mechanism assembled as a complete unit before it is inserted into the doll head. The unit may be suitably clipped, fixed, or otherwise attached within the doll head or, if desired, the unit may be incorporated with the doll head mold and then molded into place as the doll head itself is molded or formed.

In accordance with my invention, a housing is provided which may contain one or both eyeballs, as desired. The eyeballs are pivotally mounted within the housing and are moved into closed, sleeping position and to open, aroused position by means of a swinging pendulum whose movement is controlled by a guide rack fixed within the housing. The eyeballs are brought into closed, sleeping position in successive stages by sidewise rocking movement of the doll. When the doll is picked up so as to assume a substantially vertical, aroused position, the eyeballs return to waking position by the action of gravity on the pendulum.

The eyeball and eyeball-operating unit can be inexpensively made and assembled with a minimum of operations, and largely by unskilled labor, and can be advantageously assembled in doll heads designed to retail at comparatively low cost. The movement of the eyeballs is such as to closely simulate the eyeball movement in the human baby when it is rocked to sleep and when picked up and aroused. The child-mother obtains'great happiness and delight from the doll as herein constructed, since its eye performance, to which the child is immediately attracted, is very similar to that of a natural baby.

An object of this invention is to provide a sleeping doll having eyeballs which can be closed by a solicitous rocking movement of the doll.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved eyeball mounting and eyeball-operating mechanism which may be assembled as a complete unit and the unit thereafter inserted, attached, or otherwise applied to the doll head.

Still another object of this invention is to provide an improved eyeball unit having eyeballmounting and operating mechanism associated therewith which can be produced at low cost, which is substantially foolproof and positive in operation, and which is sturdy and strong in construction.

Other objects of this invention will become apparent as the disclosure proceeds.

' Various other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following particular description and from an inspection of the accompanying drawing.

Although the novel features which are believed to be characteristic of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto, the invention itself, as to its objects and advantages, and the manner in which it may be carried out, may be better understood by referring to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part thereof, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front face View of a socket or housing within which is mounted an eyeball and eyeball-operating mechanism;

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the eyeball and eyeball-containing housing as shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical crosssectional view through the eyeball and eyeball-containing housing showing the eyeball-manipulating mechanism contained therein, this View being taken on line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged rear elevational view of the eyeball-supporting housing, the rear cover thereof having been removed to expose certain parts of the eyeball-manipulating mechanism; and

Fig. 5 is a transverse cross-sectional view through the eyeball-containing housing illustrating particularly the manner in which the eyeball may be mounted within the socket, this view being taken on line 55 of Fig. 3.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views of the drawing and the specification.

My improved eyeball unit comprises an eyeball socket or housing 50, having a generally domeshaped contour and which is provided with an eye opening 5| shaped to simulate the natural eye opening in the human head. The housing 5!! is provided with a laterally extending flange portion 53 and a shoulder portion 52 which provide a raised rim around one end of the housing 50. The housing is closed by means of a suitable cover 54 which telescopes over the shoulder portion 52 and may be secured thereto either by frictional engagement or other suitable means. The housing 50 and the cover member 54 may be inexpensively made from stamped metal parts.

As shown more particularly in Figs. 3 and 5, the eyeball may be formed of stamped metal shaped in the form of a dome having an arcuate portion 60 which seats within and conforms to the contour of the inner face of the domeshaped housing 50. A portion of the outer surface of the dome-shaped eyeball 60 is decorated to represent respectively the pupil 66a, and the iris 66b, and the surrounding sclerotic coat or white portion 660 of the eyeball. The upper portion of the dome-shaped eyeball is decorated as at 66d to represent the upper eyelid. Suitable hairs or fibers 61 as desired may be secured to the eyeball member 60 to simulate the eyelashes. The dome-shaped eyeball member 60 is provided with side portions or flanges 62, which are provided with diametrically opposed openings 64 therein to receive the pivotal stud elements 63 projecting inwardly from the housing 50. The stud elements 63 may, if desired, be formed by punching in the metal of the housing so as to provide a projection 63 upon which the eyeball member 60 may freely pivot. Sufficient clearance between the eyeball member 60 and the inner surface of the housing 50 should be provided to permit free swinging movement of the eyeball member 60.

Mechanism is provided to pivot the eyeballs as the doll is rocked so as to bring the eyeballs into closed, sleeping position by gradual stages. A bar 14 having a. hook portion 11 at one end thereof is provided, which is hooked or connected to a lip portion 18 extending laterally from a flange 6| which may be stamped integrally from the dome-shaped eyeball member 60. The bar 14 is so connected to the flange 6| as to permit free sidewise swinging movement of the bar 14, but any movement of the bar 14 in a direction transverse of the eyeball will operate to pivot the eyeball 60 about the stud elements 63.

The opposite end 16 of the bar 14 is operatively connected to a guide member 10 which has a generally arcuate shape and is provided with an elongated slot 13 into or through which the end 16 of the bar 14 projects. The guide or rack member 10 may be provided with a flange H which may be suitably secured, as by welding, to the inside face of the shoulder portion 52. The bar 14 is weighted by means of a weight 75 which may comprise a lump of lead or other suitable heavy material. When the bar 14 is in the position shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the eye appears open, the end 16 of the bar 14 then resting at what may be termed the lower end 8| of the slot 13. A plurality of barbs 30 project inwardly into the slot 13 so that the end 16 of the bar 14 can be moved to the other end of the slot 13 only by taking a zigzag path which is effected by rocking the doll sidewise.

When it is desired to put the doll to sleep, the child-mother lays the doll flat in its crib or in the child-mother's arms, in which position the bar M will hang suspended from the lip portion 78. Sidewise rocking movement of the doll will cause the slot-engaging end 16 of the bar to travel, under the force of gravity, toward the opposite end 90 of the slot. At the beginning of the rocking movement, the end 15 of the bar will rest upon the shoulder 8|, but when the doll is rocked sidewise the end 16 of the bar will drop so as to rest on the opposite shoulder 82, Further rocking movement will bring the end portion 16 of the bar 14 successively into seating contact with the shoulder portion 83, the shoul der portion 84, the shoulder portion 85, the shoulder portion 86, the shoulder portion 81, and so on continuously until the end of the slot 90 is reached, in which position the eyeball will appear closed and the opening 5| will disclose the eyelid portion 66d of the eyeball. When the doll is to be aroused, the doll is lifted into vertical position, which causes the weighted bar 14 to drop back through the slot 13 by the force of gravity to again seat the end 8| of the slot, in which position the eyes appear open. It is understood that the slot 13 may be provided with any desired number of opposed barbs so that the eyes can be closed with a relatively few number of rocking movements or closed only upon the execution of a considerable number of rocking movements.- When the doll is lifted from sleeping position and aroused, the end 16 of the bar 14 will slip back into eye-opening position through the slot substantially without interference, which movement is facilitated by the cam surfaces 9| of the barbs 30.

It is understood that a housing 50 may be shaped to enclose a single eyeball or both eyeballs and associated operating mechanism. In the construction here shown all the elements are made from stamped parts which can be formed and assembled together substantially by machine operation requiring a minimum of hand labor, and consequently can be manufactured at low cost. The eye-ball-operating mechanism and housing is assembled as a complete unit before the insertion into the doll head. The shoulder portion 52 serves to retain the housing in fixed position within the doll head, as shown in Fig. 2. A resilient mass I00 suitably cemented or otherwise secured to the inside of the doll head, is provided with a housing-receiving cavity. The resilient material I00 is sufficiently expansible to permit stretching and the ready insertion of the housing 50 and its associated eyeball and eyeball-operating mechanism.

The eyeball mounting and operating mechanism herein described can be used with many different varieties of dolls. Heretofore, so-called sleeping dolls have been expensive due to the fact that the eye-operating mechanism has been uno duly complicated and difficult to assemble in the doll head. The eye-ball operating mechanism herein disclosed is assembled with the eyeball as a complete, integral functioning unit, thus avoiding the difficulty of assembling the parts under cramped conditions within the doll head. The complete eyeball-operating unit may be inserted into the doll head through the neck opening, or if the head is assembled in two parts the eyeballoperating unit can be inserted in the head prior to the application of the back portion of the head to the facial portion, or if desired the unit may be placed in a suitable head-shaping mold and the head molded around the unit. In such cases the molding material would be made of disintegratable material so that it can be removed after the head has been cast.

Since the eyeball, eyeball mounting and operating mechanism are first formed as an assembled unit prior to the insertion thereof into the doll head, the same can be made and assembled on a mass production basis substantially entirely by automatic machinery and with a minimum amount of labor. The unit can thus be made at very low cost and can be embodied as a feature in doll bodies marketable at a price considerably below the price of dolls heretofore made having eyes which are rocked to sleep. The unit is sturdy and strong in construction, positive in operation, and the functional parts are so correlated as to operate efiiciently and effectively. The moving parts are so supported that jars given to the doll body or doll head will not displace or disarrange the parts. The eyeball-operating mechanism can be associated with doll bodies of innumerable shapes and forms and made from all the various materials commonly used in the art.

While certain novel features of the invention have been disclosed and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood that various modifications, omissions, substitutions and changes may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A sleeping doll including in combination, a doll head, a self-contained housing having a dome-shaped portion, an eye opening in said dome-shaped portion, a dome-shaped eyeball pivotally mounted within said dome-shaped housing portion, means within and supported by said housing operative to move said eyeball into closed position when the doll is placed in supine position and given a sidewise rocking movement, and a closure for said housing enclosing said eyeballmoving means within said housing.

2. A sleeping doll including in combination, a doll head, an eyeball, eyeball-operating mechanism, a self-contained housing enclosing said eyeball and eyeball-operating mechanism, means in the doll head for supporting said housing, means for pivotally mounting said eyeball in said housing, said eyeball-operating mechanism including a pendulum operatively connected with said eyeball and designed to pivot said eyeball into open and closed position, and a guide rack associated with said pendulum positioned within and supported by said housing.

3. A sleeping doll including in combination, a doll head having an eye opening in the facial portion thereof, an eyeball, an enclosed housing containing said eyeball supported within said doll head, means for pivotally mounting said eyeball in said housing, and means within and supported by'said housing operative to move said eyeball by successive stages into closed position when the doll is placed in reclining position and given a sidewise rocking movement.

4. A sleeping doll including in combination, a doll head, an eye assembly in the doll head including a dome-shaped housing, an eyeball pivotally mounted in said housing, means Within said housing operative to move said eyeball by successive stages into closed position when the doll is given a sidewise rocking movement, said eyeball and said eyeball-operating means being entirely supported by and contained within said housing, and a cover closure for said housing.

5. A sleeping doll including, in combination, a doll head having an eye opening therein, a resilient member secured within the doll head, a socket cavity in said resilient member adjacent said eye opening, and an eye assembly positioned in said socket cavity, said eye assembly including, a housing having a dome-shaped portion and a continuous laterally projecting rim portion seating Within a corresponding continuous recess surrounding said socket cavity, an eyeball pivotally mounted in said housing, means within said housing operative to move said eyeball by successive stages in closed position when the doll is given a sidewise rocking movement, said eyeball and eyeball-operating means being supported by and entirely contained within said housing.

6. An eye unit adapted to be inserted in a doll head including, a housing having a domeshaped portion and a rim portion, a closure member having telescoping engagement with said rim portion, a dome-shaped eyeball pivotally mounted in said dome-shaped portion, means within said housing operative to move said eyeball by successive stages to closed position when the doll is given a sidewise rocking movement, said means including a pendulum having one end thereof connected to said eyeball and the other end thereof projecting through and cooperating with a rack member, said rack member being entirely contained within said housing.

'7. An eye unit adapted to be inserted in a doll head including, a housing having a domeshaped portion and a continuous laterally projecting rim portion, a closure member telescoping over said rim portion, a dome-shaped eyeball pivotally mounted in said dome-shaped portion, and means entirely contained within said housing operative to move said eyeball by successive stages to closed position when the doll is placed in reclining position and given a sidewise rocking movement, said means including a plate member having an elongated slot therein positioned adjacent the inside face of said closure, means operatively connected to said eyeball designed to pivot said eyeball to open and closed position, and barbs projecting inwardly into said slot so as to cause said pivoting means to describe a zig-zag path as it is moved along said slot.

EDWARD G. SCHAEFFER. 

